Chapter 7
The beach near the marina glowed beneath string lights and bonfires by the time Johanna arrived.
Music drifted through the salty night air while waves rolled rhythmically against the shoreline beyond the dunes. Several fires burned across the sand surrounded by folding chairs, coolers, blankets, and groups of laughing people gathered beneath the stars.
The entire scene looked warm and alive in a way only Sheraton Beach could manage.
Of course, firefighters would somehow turn a casual beach gathering into something that felt suspiciously romantic.
Johanna stepped carefully through the sand, immediately recognizing familiar faces from around town.
Couples sat wrapped together beneath blankets.
Children roasted marshmallows while sugar and smoke scented the air.
A group of firefighters tossed a football near the dunes while music drifted softly from portable speakers planted beside coolers.
The atmosphere wrapped around her instantly.
Salt air. Wood smoke. Beer. Laughter. Firelight dancing across smiling faces. Sheraton Beach at its absolute best.
“Well, damn.”
Johanna turned toward the voice.
MacKenzie stood beside one of the coolers wearing ripped jeans, sneakers, and a Ravens sweatshirt beneath an oversized jacket. Her hand rested absentmindedly against the curve of her stomach and amusement danced openly across her face.
“You came to spend time with your boo tonight?”
Johanna sighed heavily. “Why is everybody in this town committed to embarrassing me?”
“Because we’re happy for him.” MacKenzie handed her a drink before leaning closer conspiratorially. “Also, Blaze has been pacing for twenty straight minutes.”
Heat rushed to Johanna’s cheeks.
“He has not.”
MacKenzie simply pointed toward the shoreline.
And there he was.
Heaven help me.
Blaze stood near the water talking with Ryan and several firefighters. Dark jeans hung low on his narrow hips while firelight flickered across his broad shoulders covered by a black hoodie.
The hoodie should’ve been illegal.
There was honestly no other explanation for why one man needed to look that good standing still.
Johanna’s stomach tightened the second Blaze lifted his head as if he sensed her before he even saw her. Then those warm brown eyes locked onto hers across the beach.
Everything around her blurred slightly after that.
Ryan glanced toward Johanna next, then slowly grinned at Blaze with immediate understanding. Blaze ignored him completely because his attention stayed fixed exactly where it belonged.
On her.
And then he started walking toward her.
Calm confidence rolled off him with every step through the sand. He moved like a man completely secure in himself, and somehow that masculine steadiness affected her more than arrogance ever could.
The terrifying part… her body reacted instantly.
MacKenzie smirked knowingly before disappearing like the emotionally manipulative fairy godmother she clearly enjoyed being.
Blaze stopped directly in front of Johanna.
Close enough for his scent to wrap around her immediately and disturb her peace.
His gaze traveled slowly over her face, then lower, taking in the cream sweater, fitted jeans, boots, and loose curls spilling around her shoulders.
Appreciative. Intentional. And Lord help her… that somehow felt even more intimate.
“Well,” Blaze said finally, his voice low and rough around the edges, “I knew you’d come.”
Johanna’s breath caught embarrassingly fast. “You say things entirely too smoothly.”
One corner of his mouth lifted slightly. “That wasn’t smooth. That was honest.”
Firelight danced across the hard lines of his face while ocean wind curled around them both. Up close, Blaze always looked overwhelmingly masculine in a way that felt impossible to ignore.
He carried himself with the kind of quiet confidence that made women instinctively trust him to keep them safe. And desire them at the same time.
That combination should have required legal supervision.
“I’m glad you came,” he said quietly.
Johanna lifted one shoulder casually, pretending his voice didn’t affect her nervous system. “I was promised snacks.”
Blaze stepped slightly closer. “I invited you because I wanted you here.”
There it was again. That direct honesty that completely disarmed her.
Blaze said exactly what he meant, every single time. No guessing. No mixed signals. No wondering where she stood.
Johanna broke eye contact first and glanced toward the fire because too much eye contact with this man felt emotionally unsafe. When Johanna glanced back toward the bonfire, she realized the crew was pretending not to watch them.
Ryan stood near the cooler wearing a smirk big enough to require medical intervention while Michael whispered something to another firefighter that immediately made both men laugh.
Across the fire, MacKenzie sipped her drink with the satisfied expression of a woman who absolutely believed she deserved credit for this entire reunion.
“Your friends are annoying,” Johanna muttered.
Blaze laughed softly beside her. “You should hear the things your sister says to me.”
Her head snapped toward him immediately. “Why are you talking to Paige?”
“She texted me earlier.”
Johanna looked genuinely horrified. “Why?”
Blaze fought a grin and failed completely. “Apparently she needed reassurance I wasn’t out here acting stupid with her sister again.”
“I’m going to strangle her.”
“That’s fair.” His grin widened. “But your little friend group might get to me first.”
Johanna narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “What does that mean?”
Blaze took a slow sip of beer, clearly enjoying himself now.
“The Saltwater Sisters added me to a group chat.”
Her soul nearly left her body.
“No.”
“Oh, yes.” He nodded calmly. “And for the record, those women are aggressive. Tasha threatened to tie me to the fire station pole if I even thought about playing with your emotions.”
Johanna closed her eyes slowly while mentally calculating the cost of a one-way ticket to another continent.
Possibly Japan.
Definitely somewhere without Wi-Fi.
Beside her, Blaze’s grin only deepened.
That man smiling is a public safety issue.
Before she could recover emotionally, Ryan suddenly appeared beside them carrying beers.
“Well, look who finally showed up.”
Johanna pointed immediately. “Don’t start.”
Ryan looked offended. “I’m being welcoming.”
Blaze laughed. “You’ve never been welcoming a day in your life.”
“That’s fair,” Ryan admitted calmly. He handed him a beer before looking toward Johanna with suspicious innocence.
“You know this dude ironed his jeans tonight?”
Blaze looked ready to commit violence instantly.
Johanna burst out laughing.
Blaze looked at her like hearing that sound physically affected him.
The teasing around them faded after that.
The fire crackled nearby while conversations and music blurred into the background because suddenly Blaze focused on only one thing.
Her.
Blaze lifted the beer slowly to his mouth without taking his eyes off her.
Ryan looked between them once and immediately started backing away.
“Alright,” he announced, “I can physically feel sexual tension in the air, so I’m leaving.”
Johanna nearly choked laughing again.
Blaze shook his head. “Ignore him.”
“Hard to do when he announces things like a town crier.”
The fire popped nearby while music shifted into a slow old-school beat through the speakers.
Couples danced in the sand farther down the beach. Laughter drifted through the night air while firefighters argued loudly over football statistics near another bonfire.
Everything about the atmosphere felt intimate.
Blaze leaned slightly closer.
“Walk with me.”
Not demanding.
Not pushy.
Just quiet masculine confidence.
She absolutely should have said no.
Instead, she found herself falling into step beside him before common sense could organize a proper argument.
The shoreline stretched darker and quieter away from the crowd while moonlight spilled silver across the water. Waves rolled steadily against wet sand beneath the stars.
For several moments neither of them spoke.
Their arms brushed occasionally as they walked, and every accidental touch sparked awareness instantly.
Eventually Blaze glanced down at her. “You nervous?”
Johanna looked up carefully. “About what?”
“Me.”
The confidence in that answer should’ve irritated her.
Instead, warmth bloomed low in her stomach again.
“A little,” she admitted honestly.
Blaze nodded slowly like honesty mattered to him.
“Good.”
Johanna blinked. “Good?”
His eyes lowered briefly to her mouth. “Means I’m not the only one struggling tonight.”
Heat swept through her instantly because Lord, she felt him too.
Everywhere.
He tossed the beer can in the trash bin, then took her hand and intertwined their fingers.
The ocean breeze lifted the hem of her coat while Blaze reached out automatically, steadying her through uneven sand with one hand brushing lightly against her waist.
The touch lingered slightly too long.
Johanna inhaled sharply.
Blaze’s gaze darkened immediately.
That awareness flashed between them again, heavier now than before.
Hungry.
Dinner had carried emotional intimacy, but this felt physical. Like attraction finally stopped pretending to behave itself.
Blaze stepped closer slowly until warmth from his body surrounded her against the cool ocean air.
“I know what your problem is,” he murmured.
Johanna’s voice softened despite herself. “You really enjoy diagnosing me.”
A grin tugged briefly at his mouth before fading again. “No,” he said quietly. “Your problem is you think fighting this protects you.”
“Who says I’m fighting anything?” she said, although somewhere deep down… she knew he was right.
Blaze lifted one hand slowly and brushed his thumb along her jaw.
Johanna’s eyes fluttered briefly closed. The tenderness nearly undid her.
“Braxton…”
The second his full name left her mouth, something shifted visibly in his expression.
Darker now.
Needier.